Qatar Calls for Lasting Stop to Sudan’s Fighting

Gen. Abdel Fattah Burhan and the Qatari Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani meet in Doha
Gen. Abdel Fattah Burhan and the Qatari Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani meet in Doha
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Qatar Calls for Lasting Stop to Sudan’s Fighting

Gen. Abdel Fattah Burhan and the Qatari Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani meet in Doha
Gen. Abdel Fattah Burhan and the Qatari Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani meet in Doha

Sudan's army chief traveled to Qatar on Thursday for talks with the country's emir, making his third international trip since fighting broke out between the military and the Rapid Support Forces in mid-April.

Sudan plunged into chaos almost five months ago, when long-simmering tensions between the military, led by Gen. Abdel Fattah Burhan and the RSF, commanded by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, escalated into open warfare on April 15.

During the visit, Burhan and the Qatari Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, discussed the challenges facing conflict-stricken Sudan.

The talks took place in the Qatari capital, Doha, according to a statement by the Emiri Diwan media outlet.

Al Thani reiterated his call for broad peace negotiations between all of Sudan's political forces and a lasting stop to the fighting, the statement said.

Sudan's acting Foreign Minister Ali al-Sadiq and Gen. Ahmed Ibrahim Mufadel, head of the General Intelligence Authority, accompanied Burhan on the trip, Sudan's state run SUNA news agency said.

The visit comes amid a flurry of similar diplomatic meetings convened in Egypt and South Sudan, where Burhan held talks on Monday with South Sudan's president, Salva Kiir.

Last week, the general met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi in the Egyptian coastal city of el-Alamein, in Burhan's first trip abroad since Sudan's conflict erupted.



Syria’s Leader Meets with Bahraini Diplomatic Delegation

The leader of Syria's new administration, Ahmed al-Sharaa meets Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdul Latif Al-Zayani in Damascus, Syria, January 8, 2025. (Bahrain News Agency/Handout via Reuters)
The leader of Syria's new administration, Ahmed al-Sharaa meets Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdul Latif Al-Zayani in Damascus, Syria, January 8, 2025. (Bahrain News Agency/Handout via Reuters)
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Syria’s Leader Meets with Bahraini Diplomatic Delegation

The leader of Syria's new administration, Ahmed al-Sharaa meets Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdul Latif Al-Zayani in Damascus, Syria, January 8, 2025. (Bahrain News Agency/Handout via Reuters)
The leader of Syria's new administration, Ahmed al-Sharaa meets Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdul Latif Al-Zayani in Damascus, Syria, January 8, 2025. (Bahrain News Agency/Handout via Reuters)

Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa received a delegation from Bahrain on Wednesday and met with the Bahraini foreign minister, state media reported.

The visit was the latest in a flurry of diplomatic overtures by Arab countries to Syria’s new leaders after they overthrew former President Bashar al-Assad in a lightning rebel offensive.

Like other Gulf countries, Bahrain had cut off diplomatic ties with Syria under Assad’s rule during the Syrian civil war, but it reopened its embassy in Damascus in 2018 and gradually restored ties with the Assad government.

Bahrain is the current head of the Arab summit, and days after Assad’s ouster it had sent a message to al-Sharaa offering its cooperation with the new authorities and saying, “We look forward to Syria regaining its authentic role in the Arab League.”